


i love you more than you will ever know

by suzukigunichiban



Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Childhood Friends, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-14 22:41:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20608523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/suzukigunichiban/pseuds/suzukigunichiban
Summary: Lily Carter and Jeff Hardy have been with each other through it all.





	i love you more than you will ever know

“... and I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Hardy. You may now kiss the bride.” 

Jeff Hardy, aged proudly five and a half, crinkled his nose at what his older brother had said. “Aw, gross, Matty.” 

The ‘bride’, a little girl the same age as the youngest Hardy that she was ‘marrying’, her choppy brown hair put up in two sloppy braids and a smudge of mud on her cheek that her parents had tried and failed to clean off of her, made a similar disgusted face. “Yeah! I don’t wanna get  _ cooties!” _

“Well, if you’re gonna be  _ marryin’ _ each other, you gotta kiss!” Matt insisted. “You guys were the ones who said you wanted to get married anyway!” 

“Kissing is  _ gross!” _ Lily Carter, the little girl, protested, her tiny hands on her hips. If she had  _ known  _ that she’d have to kiss her best friend, she would have  _ never _ told Matty that she wanted to marry Jeff. 

“Why don’t you just hug instead, baby girl?” Lily’s parents asked, who were standing side by side with Matt and Jeff’s parents, both of the moms with clunky video cameras in hand, in their audience filled up the rest of the way with their favorite wrestling action figures. Lily and Jeff hadn’t known - or really cared - why their parents had to be recording this, but Matty had told the two to let it happen, so they had. 

Lily’s blue eyes met Jeff’s green eyes, and the two simply shrugged. That sounded good enough. They hugged all the time. So, much to the delight of the family watching, Lily and Jeff embraced each other, cementing their ‘marriage’. 

* * *

Lily was seven years old now. Older, of course, to think her little ‘wedding’ with Jeff a few years back was  _ so _ embarrassing, but still young enough to be absolutely  _ terrified _ of the thunder and lightning that was shaking her home and want her best friend to come comfort her. 

She let out another pathetic whimper as a crack of thunder and a bolt of lightning illuminated her bedroom, her grip tightening on her sheets, and just about jumped out of her skin when she felt her bed dip and a hand rest on her shoulder.

She whirled around, her eyes wide with fear, but instantly relaxed when she saw exactly who it was. Quickly, she threw her arms around Jeff and buried her face in his chest, squeezing him tightly and trembling ever so slightly. “Your momma is gonna be so mad when she sees you snuck out again…” 

“I don’t care.” Jeff whispered right back, holding her just as tightly and providing her the comfort she had been practically  _ praying _ for all night. “You hate storms.” 

Lily shook and flinched as yet another clap of thunder, and shortly thereafter, some lightning, hit. Jeff was right, she  _ hated _ storms. She pulled back from his arms a bit with a little sniffle, but neither of them really let go of each other. “S’not fair. You’re not scared of  _ anything.” _

Jeff shook his head adamantly. “That ain’t true.” 

“You’re not scared to climb that big tree in your backyard.” Lily countered. “You’re not scared to sneak out, or scared of storms.” 

“Well… What if I helped you not be so scared of storms?” Jeff offered, making Lily look at him questioningly. “Here, turn around, look out the window.” 

Hesitantly, but trusting her best friend more than anything, Lily turned around in her bed to look out the window, like he said. The two were quiet as they waited for another clap of thunder, and before Lily could even say anything, Jeff was murmuring comfortingly right by her ear. 

“One one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand, four one thousand, five one thousand, s-” Right before Jeff counted to six one thousand, the lightning appeared. “So that means it’s five miles away.”

“O-oh.” Lily blinked in surprise. Five miles? That was a lot. “Well… okay. That ain’t so bad. But what happens when it’s closer?” 

“I saw it one time. When it was so close I couldn’t even count to one one thousand.” Jeff said slowly. “It was so  _ pretty, _ Lils.  _ Bright _ blue. Brightest blue  _ ever. _ I was scared then, but just because it’s scary don’t mean it ain’t pretty.” 

“So…” Lily drawled, feeling more and more relaxed as Jeff went on. “You  _ do _ get scared, then?” 

“S’what I already told you.” Jeff pointed out. “I just think something can be scary and cool at the same time.” 

Lily smiled, staring out at the window. Scary and cool. Okay. “Thanks, Jeffro.” 

“Anytime, Lily Flower.” 

The two stayed up for nearly the rest of that storm before they finally fell asleep, holding each other. The Hardys, Matt included, came over early the next morning, terrified when they couldn’t find the youngest, but after the Carters showed them Lily and Jeff still sleeping, all was well. 

* * *

“So, are you two crazy kids excited about your first school dance?” Matt Hardy asked mischievously, as if he wasn’t a kid himself. Though, being a big, bad eighth grader, he probably thought that he  _ was _ a bit above ‘kid’ status. 

Jeff frowned, though it looked a bit silly on his face, since he was hanging upside down by his knees on their favorite tree in the backyard of the Hardy Home, with Lily sitting properly on top of a branch just opposite of him, the same frown on her face as she looked at Matt on the ground below them, alongside the homework they were  _ supposed _ to be doing. 

“I’m not going to no ridiculous  _ dance.” _ Jeff said stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest. 

Lily side eyed Jeff, furtively biting on the inside of her cheek before responding with just as much mirth as her best friend was presenting. “Yeah, me neither. Looks dumb. ‘Sides, Jeffro said he could convince my momma to take us to see if they have the newest WWF action figures at the store that Saturday.” 

Unbeknownst to the two stubborn eleven year olds up in a tree (who were frustratingly  _ not _ k-i-s-s-i-n-g), Matt sighed grumpily, before brightening considerably. 

“That’s a shame, Lils, cause I heard that Mason, one of the kids in my class, was real interested in askin’ you. Was gonna bring you flowers and everything.” Matt lied through his teeth, his hands in his pockets crossing his fingers. 

Lily’s eyes were wide in her shock, and Jeff swung his body up and turned around so he was sitting properly on the tree branch, scowling at Matt like he had just insulted him by the mere  _ mention _ of another kid asking Lily out. 

“What,  _ really?” _ Lily asked in surprise. “That Mason with the red hair?”

“That’s the one.” Matt confirmed, looking up at Lily expectantly. “Are you gonna say yes?” 

Before Lily could even open her mouth, Jeff answered for her. “Nope. Cause we’re gonna be going together.” 

Lily’s face turned brighter red than the strawberries growing in her momma’s garden as Jeff, more or less, asked her out. Of course, that was what she wanted to begin with… but she wasn’t sure if she wanted him to do it just to stop someone else from doing it first. 

“Thought you said that you weren’t goin’, Jeffro.” Matt tried not to sound like he was taunting his younger brother, but ultimately failed. 

“Well I’m sure as hell not letting Lily go with  _ Mason.” _ Jeff scoffed, the two sixth graders not able to look at each other. “What if he just hurts her feelings? What kind of best friend would I be if I just let that happen?” 

Lily ducked her head to try to hide it, but Matt saw her wince.  _ Damn it, Jeff. _

“No, I mean, he’s right.” Lily reasoned after she took a brief moment to compose herself. “Better I go with Jeff and have a good time than get asked to go by someone else and have a bad time. Sides, my momma said she really wanted me to go. Might as well, just to make her happy, right?” 

Matt felt like he could  _ scream _ in his frustration. How was it possible that he could back the two into this corner and have them both  _ still _ run away from their feelings? 

“Exactly.” Jeff agreed. “So we can just go together. And hell, we can just do this all the time, you know, just in case. Lils, if you think the gal I wanna go out with is bad news, you can just be my date instead, and I’ll do the same with you.” 

Lily seemed more than a little relieved as Jeff said that it would go both ways, leaning around the tree trunk to hold her hand out for her best friend to shake. “Sounds good.” 

Meanwhile, Matt buried his face in his hands. This was gonna take a lot longer than he thought. That was okay, though. He was patient. 

* * *

The first time Lily had to take Jeff up on that offer was only a year later. She had been in the bathroom washing her hands during lunch when she heard two girls chatting with each other about who they were going to ask, and one of them had giggled and lowered her voice to say that she was going to ask ‘the youngest Hardy, the cute one’. After Lily spent a moment being offended on Matty’s behalf, she felt an instant panic rising in her. 

Of course, she didn’t know this girl, didn’t know if she was a good match for Jeff or not, but she didn’t like  _ anyone _ asking Jeff out, damn it. So, after finishing up washing and drying her hands, she left the bathroom and ran  _ immediately _ to her and Jeff’s usual spot, where he was hanging out with a few of their mutual friends. 

“Jeffro, c’mere.” Lily murmured, tugging on his shirt and bringing him a bit aways from the friend group. His eyebrows knit together in obvious confusion, but he followed her nonetheless. 

“What, what’s goin’ on?” Jeff asked quietly, sneaking glances around them to make sure they were having this conversation quietly, as if what Lily was about to tell him was of the  _ upmost _ importance, rather than what it actually was. Lily  _ did _ feel momentarily bad about that, but not bad enough. 

“Well… I was in the bathroom, y’know, and I heard this girl, she was being a total  _ bitch, _ and she was talkin’ to her friend, saying she was gonna ask you to Sadie Hawkins.” Lily let the lies tumble out, feeling already guilty for it, but not  _ nearly _ guilty enough to come clean about it.

Jeff’s nose crinkled up in distaste. “Gross. Well, who was she? So I know to say no.” 

Lily shrugged helplessly, but was internally very relieved that he believed her without further questioning. “Dunno. I didn’t recognize her face. But remember last year, during the formal thing, when we made a big deal about you askin’ me so that no one else would?” 

Jeff, thankfully, put two and two together before Lily had to come right out and say it. “Yeah, yeah, let’s do that again. Ask me, like, tomorrow or somethin’. We can make a sign or whatever together when we get home after we practice, and you can do it during lunch time, yeah?” 

“Sounds good.” Lily agreed, feeling, as always, a million times better now that she had talked to Jeff. It was really amazing, how quickly he was able to relax her without even trying. 

“Thanks, Lils. I’m glad you caught that.” Jeff said with a big grin, pulling her in for a tight hug. She hugged him back just as tightly, smiling into his chest and reveling in the feeling. She swore that there was nothing that couldn’t be fixed with a hug from her best friend. 

“No problem, Jeffro. I got your back, you know that.” The brunette girl told him, pulling back from the hug only when the bell rang once again. 

“I know, and I do too.” The two linked arms then, Jeff walking her in the direction of her fifth period class, and after a brief hug at the door, he rushed across campus to go to his class. Lily couldn’t help but feel so lucky to have him in her life… even if being his best friend wasn’t  _ all _ that she wanted. 

* * *

Lily and Jeff, now fifteen, were laying in the center of the makeshift ring that Matt and Jeff’s dad had built, panting and trying to catch their breaths, staring up at the setting sun before them. Ever since the thing had been built, Matt, Jeff and Lily had made it in there almost every single day to practice, to try to mimic some of the moves that they saw on TV. 

Lily’s parents had been, of course, against it, but since Lily told the Hardy’s she’d help Jeff with his grades, the two sets of parents agreed that there’d be no harm in it as long as they were careful, and that Lily helped Jeff pass his classes.

They  _ weren’t _ careful, and Jeff was  _ barely _ passing, but they hadn’t been told to stop yet, so they kept going. Matt hadn’t joined them tonight, instead hanging out with some other friends of theirs, but Jeff and Lily preferred this to a night out, anyway. 

Ordinarily, Lily would  _ swear _ that this, that wrestling with the boys was the best damn therapy there was, especially for two high school freshman and a junior, but lately… something had been bugging her. 

And that  _ something _ was named Lizzie, a girl who had been sort of with Jeff and sort of not for the last few months. Lily  _ hated _ her. She hated her perfect skin, her pretty face, her curvy body. She was everything Lily  _ wasn’t. _ Lily, who was always covered in dirt from when she and Matty and Jeff would wrestle in the backyard. Lily, who’s features were a little clunky and uneven. Lily, who was just  _ different _ and Lizzie, who  _ literally _ modeled after school. 

And to make matters worse… Lizzie was actually a really sweet girl. And Jeff seemed so genuinely into her. And for the first time… Lily couldn’t bring herself to do anything about it. So she supported him, she let it happen, she gave him advice and cheered him on from the sidelines. Hell, she’d even given  _ Lizzie _ some advice on Jeff, since everyone knew the two were joined at the hip. 

It  _ hurt. _ It hurt Lily so bad. It felt like her heart was being ripped out of her chest. But above all else, she was Jeff’s  _ best friend. _ And she’d be a real shitty best friend if she stopped him from being happy just because she was jealous. 

“I think Lizzie is gonna try to kiss me.” Jeff blurted after he had caught his breath. Lily swallowed down the stab of pain that hit her whole body like she took a bad suplex, and turned her head to look at Jeff, who looked almost  _ lost. _

“Do you  _ want _ to kiss her?” Lily asked slowly, hoping beyond hope that his answer would be  _ hell no, _ that she’d see his nose crinkle up like he did when he didn’t like something, that he’d get that little wrinkle in his forehead. 

“Well… Yeah. I think so.” Jeff told her, albeit a little awkwardly. “Problem is, she told me she’s had her first kiss, and I haven’t.” 

A bit of the pain eased knowing that, at least, he was like her, that he hadn’t had his first kiss yet. But then knowing that he was going to have it with  _ Lizzie, _ that he  _ wanted _ to have it with Lizzie and not  _ Lily… _

“So what?” Lily said abruptly, trying to distract herself from her own thoughts. Best friend  _ first, _ that’s what she kept telling herself. “She’s a sweet girl. She won’t mind.” 

Jeff sat up then, bringing his knees to his chest and crossing his arms over them, resting his chin on top. “I just don’t wanna make a fool of myself is all.” 

“Can’t be that hard.” Lily reasoned, sitting up with him, crossing her legs and folding her hands in her lap as she looked at him. “Just lips to lips, right?”

Jeff shrugged helplessly, but remained otherwise silent. And since Lily didn’t have any sort of advice for this, and she didn’t exactly  _ want _ to encourage it, she shut her mouth, too. Looking at the sunset through the shoddy, worn out ropes, listening to the sounds of nature all around them and trying her hardest not to calm down. 

It was only a minute or two of silence before Jeff said something that made her world stop. 

“What if we practice kissed?” 

Already, Lily’s hands began to shake, and her heart began to race in anticipation, but she was doing her damndest to seem nonchalant, squeezing her hands together tightly. “What do you mean?” 

“Well, hear me out.” Jeff said, a bit more excitedly this time, moving now to sit the way she was. “We become each other’s first kiss, that way we both don’t look foolish when we someone to actually kiss, you know? Plus, what if we end up not liking the person we have ‘first kisses’ with? Then, it won’t matter, because we were each other’s  _ real _ first kiss.” 

Lily had to admit, the part of her brain that wasn’t always thinking about how much she was in love with him thought that he had a pretty good point there. But the other, bigger part of her brain was  _ screaming _ at her that this was a bad idea, that it wasn’t fair to her to have to do this just so that Jeff wasn’t looking dumb when he kissed  _ Lizzie _ for the first time, that all it was going to do was break her heart in the long run. 

“It makes sense.” Lily admitted, without even realizing she was saying it. Oh, god, was she  _ really _ going to do this? Was she going to let this happen even though it was just going to hurt? 

“So, do you want to?” Jeff asked excitedly, his grin faltering when she hesitated for a moment, voice lowering. “Lils, we don’t have to if you don’t want to. It was just an idea.” 

_ Don’t do it! _

“Yeah, no, it’s a good idea.” Lily smiled comfortingly back at him. “We should do it.” 

“Alright, uh…” Jeff cleared his throat, sitting up a little better and scooting closer. Lily tried so hard to hide the fact that she was damn near  _ breathless _ as she did the same. 

For a few moments, it was almost painfully silent - blue eyes met green and it seemed even the world around them went quiet as they sat completely still. 

“Lily…” Jeff said so softly, Lily wasn’t sure if she was just hearing things or not. 

“Yeah?” She whispered back, wondering if he was going to call her out on the fact that her heart was racing so fast and so  _ loud _ in her chest. She’d be shocked if he couldn’t hear it - it sounded like the thunder from that crazy storm all those years ago. 

“I…” His voice trailed off, Lily looking at him hopefully, wondering if maybe he’d say that he didn’t want this to  _ just _ be a practice kiss, that he wanted it to be the real deal, but he never did. “Aw, hell.” 

And with that, Jeff leaned forward and closed the gap between the two, their knees bumping together but neither of them seemed to mind as their lips clumsily pressed to each other’s. And though it was nothing but a simple bit of pressure, it felt like the best thing in the  _ world _ to Lily. It felt like fireworks, it felt like her heart was doing a moonsault off the top rope, it felt like-

Slowly, but without any warning, Jeff pulled away, looking just as dazed as Lily did. Once again, the two stared at each other for a little too long, before Jeff broke the silence. 

“Did, uh. How did it, uh.” 

Lily felt herself smile, though it was more bittersweet than anything. Of course  _ he, _ of all people, would make her feel like  _ that, _ turn her world upside down, and then stumble over his words like that. He was so sweet. 

“You won’t be embarrassing yourself with Lizzie, Jeffro.” Lily said softly, putting a careful hand on his knee and squeezing before standing up, offering her hand to help him up as well. “C’mon. Let’s go, it’s getting late, we got that test in the morning.” 

Jeff made that  _ face, _ that face that never failed to make Lily laugh. 

“Man, why’d you have to go and remind me?” Jeff complained, taking her hand and leaning on the ropes to let her out. 

Yeah, it sucked that all Lily had gotten - and likely  _ would  _ ever get - was just a little taste, but to be honest, she felt lucky that she got anything at all. So, she wouldn’t complain. But tonight would be a night she’d remember  _ forever. _

* * *

A year.

A  _ year. _

Jeff scowled, throwing darts at his dartboard. 

A whole damn  _ year, _ and Lizzie had been cheating on him the  _ whole time. _ The one gal the whole school agreed was the nicest one of all of them had been cheating on him for a whole  _ year! _ God damn it, why did it have to happen to  _ him? _ What the hell had  _ he _ done wrong to deserve this? Jeff paused in his dart throwing, making a face. 

_ A lot, actually. _

Whatever.

Jeff continued to throw his darts, wanting more than anything to go to the ring and work out some anger, but Matty was asleep, and Lily likely was as well. 

Lily.

Jeff sighed, burying his face in his hands after he had thrown his last dart. Damn it. If Jeff wasn’t such a goddamn  _ coward, _ he’d have never had to date Lizzie in the first place, because he would have told Lily how he felt already. He remembered, dimly, nearly  _ ten _ years ago, he and Lily laying in her bed after he had sneaked out for the millionth time, this time so he could comfort her during a storm. They still scared the living daylights out of her back then. 

_ You’re not scared of  _ ** _anything._ **

Jeff had been adamant then that that wasn’t true. And he was right, at seven years old, he  _ did _ know that he was afraid of a few things - but now, at sixteen, he was afraid of pretty much just a few select things. 

One, that his, Matty’s, and Lily’s career in wrestling would never take off. Two, his family ever getting hurt. And three, of  _ Lily. _

Not in the traditional sense, of course; his fear of Lily stemmed more from Lily getting hurt, be it emotionally or physically, Lily coming to her senses and realizing that she was too good to stick around him and his punkass brother, and Lily finding out that he was head over heels in love with her and subsequently telling him to get lost.

And if that didn’t scare him half to death… he would have told her already. He would have held her face so gently in his hands, pushed her choppy brown hair out of her gorgeous blue eyes, would have kissed away the bruises, scrapes and sores that wrestling gave her, and would have told her that he was so in love with her he felt like he couldn’t  _ breathe _ sometimes unless he was right there next to her, exactly where he belonged. 

If he could do that, he wouldn’t have dated  _ Lizzie.  _ Lizzie, who Jeff really didn’t like all that much anyway, truth be told, but she was pretty and sweet and cared about him, and would hold him and kiss him like Lily wouldn’t. And damn it, he didn’t  _ care _ that he and Lizzie weren’t together anymore, he was mostly just mad as hell that he’d been disrespected like that, and mad at himself for being too much of a coward to prevent this whole thing to begin with. 

“Unlock your  _ damn _ window, Jeffrey Nero, Jesus  _ Christ!” _ A very familiar voice huffed, and Jeff perked up significantly to see Lily there, his Lovely Lily with her hands full, backlit by the moonlight. 

“Well so _ rry, _ Miss Thing.” Jeff snarked, unlocking his window and taking the bag of shit she brought with her and setting it down and away from the windowsill as Lily stepped back a few feet. “Don’t hesitate, Lils. Just go for it.” 

As per tradition since all three of them had started doing more complicated wrestling moves in their practices in that ring in the backyard, Lily entered his room via a running start and a dive, landing perfectly on his bed and not knocking anything over or hitting her head on anything this time. 

“Sick.” Lily grinned, looking up at Jeff goofily, high fiving him before sitting up. “I think that was my best so far.” 

“You did good, Lils.” Jeff confirmed, taking her hand and helping her stand up. “But what in the hell are ya doin’ here? It’s one in the morning.” 

Lily shrugged, standing up and rifling through the bag and handing him the snacks she had gotten him - his favorites. He blinked in his surprise, turning it over in his hands for a moment before shrugging and digging in. 

“Couldn’t sleep. I went on a walk, then ended up heading all the way to the store, and picked us up some stuff.” She explained, opening up her own bag of goodies and eating. “Besides… dunno what sort of best friend I’d be if I didn’t come over after your damn girlfriend cheated on you.” 

Jeff rubbed the back of his neck, looking down at his feet. “Lily, I-”

“I made you a mixtape.” Lily interrupted, gesturing to the grocery bag, her words a little rushed as she cut him off. “To help you feel better. All of your favorites, plus a few of mine that I know you like even though you pretend you don’t.” 

Slowly, Jeff reached in to pull out the cassette tape, staring at Lily’s sloppy handwriting on the plastic covering on it:  _ Don’t let anyone make you feel like you don’t deserve better. _

As Jeff stared, tears welling up in his eyes, Lily silently stood, wrapping her arms around him and resting her head on his chest. 

“I know it’s sappy, but… you’re my best friend.” She said softly, drawing his eyes away from the most thoughtful gift he’d ever been given, and  _ damn it, _ it looked like her eyes were stars in the night sky. He felt a pang in his chest, unable to look away from that gorgeous gaze. “And you’re worth more than some girl cheatin’ on you, alright?” 

“... Yeah.” Jeff said softly, wrapping his arm around her right back and pressing a kiss to the top of her head, unable to help himself, even though he felt so damn selfish doing this to her and letting her think it was platonic, or hell, even  _ brotherly _ , when to him, it was the exact opposite. “Thank you, sweet pea. Means more than you know.” 

Careful fingers plucked the cassette from his fingers and pushed it into his player, keeping the volume low enough to not wake up the rest of the Hardys, but loud enough for the two to hear. Neither of them said a word as time went on, listening to the whole first song just holding each other before Lily stepped out of his embrace and headed straight for his closet. 

“I’m just gonna stay the night, okay? Gonna take some of your clothes. You go lay down, I’ll be in in a minute.” Lily instructed, rifling through his closet like it was her own. Jeff shook his head in amusement, but did as he was told, turning on his bedside lamp and turning off his main light, locking up the window again and getting into bed while Lily stepped into the bathroom to get changed, coming back in one of his t-shirts and gym shorts. 

And  _ Christ, _ she was beautiful. She was… wow. His eyes softened and his heart skipped a few beats as he looked at her, looking fifty kinds of comfortable and happy and  _ his. _ He knew she wasn’t, he was  _ painfully _ aware that she wasn’t, but it still felt like it when she wore his clothes like this. It happened often enough, since they shared a bed relatively often, but it made him feel like this every single time. He hoped that feeling never  _ ever _ went away. 

She smiled right back at him, looking blissfully unaware of where his thoughts were taking him, and he tugged down his blankets and patted the space next to him. And Jeff didn’t give a damn how dramatic it sounded, but he really did feel like he was at home whenever they were together. Everyone talked about their ‘happy place’, but he didn’t have one. He had his happy  _ person, _ he had his Lily.  _ She _ was his happy place. Always had been, and always would be. 

The two instantly held each other in their arms, tangling their legs together and feeling more like LilyJeff rather than Lily  _ and _ Jeff. And yeah, it hurt knowing that this was nothing but a real good friend comforting the other after a hard breakup, but to be honest… Jeff would take the pain. It was worth it. 

“Can you promise me something, Jeffro?” Lily asked sleepily, looking up at him so innocently and sweetly. Christ, he loved her. 

“Anything, Lily Flower.” Jeff swore, and by god, he meant it.  _ Anything _ for her. 

“Promise me you won’t settle ever again.” She murmured, gently stroking his back in nonsensical patterns. “Promise that when you eventually… when you settle down and have a wife or a husband or whatever, and you want some kids, that you don’t settle for a Lizzie.” 

Jeff’s eyebrows knit together in his confusion. “What do you…?” 

“Sh.” Lily hushed him, kissing at his chest. “Just promise me. Tell me that you’ll marry someone that won’t ever  _ dream _ of treatin’ you that way.” 

Jeff’s throat got dry as his brain conjured up the image of his Lovely Lily, wearing a white dress, stepping towards him down an aisle. “What if I can’t find someone like that?” 

Lily was quiet for a moment, and Jeff was worried she’d fallen asleep mid-conversation, before she answered. “Then… let’s make a deal. Just like we’d do with dances or dates. If we’re both single by the time we’re, say, thirty, then we’ll get married.” 

Jeff felt a shiver run down his spine that had nothing to do with Lily’s fingers, and everything to do with what she just said to him. “You, uh. You really mean that, Lils?” 

Her eyes met his once again, looking far more awake and alert than she had just a few moments ago, holding out her pinkie, her voice soft as she said the sacred words. “I pinkie promise.” 

If anyone ever asked Jeff what the most important moment in his life had been so far, this would most certainly be at the top of the list, the moment where he hooked his pinkie with hers, they each kissed their own thumbs, and pressed their thumbs together, sealing it with a ‘kiss’. 

“I pinkie promise.” Jeff said just as softly, feeling so wonderful and in love and  _ happy _ , and yet anxious for the future in front of them all at once. “... G’night, Lily Flower.” 

Lily smiled, making it seem damn near like daylight rather than nearly two in the morning, and squeezed his hand once. “Night, Jeffro.” 

* * *

The years that followed after that night came and went like a whirlwind. Dreams were achieved, new ones were dreamt up. The Hardy Boyz and Lily had started from the very bottom and came up with the kind of support from hundreds of thousands of people that they never would have even  _ dreamed _ of before. Lily would have no problem speaking for all three of them in saying that it was the most incredible experience of their  _ lives. _

There was only one thing missing. 

Jeff wasn’t  _ hers. _

But, make no mistake - that was going to end  _ tonight. _

Yes, tonight was the night that Lily was going to confess. She was going to march straight up to him after his title match, win or lose, she was going to point her finger right in his face, and say the words.  _ Jeffrey Nero Hardy, I am in love with you. _

She was going to say it. She was going to say it. She… 

“Oh, my god, I can’t say it.” Lily whispered, her heart racing and her hands shaking so bad she would have thought she was that same scared, dopey little girl, quivering in the thunderstorm, with the uneven hair and the clunky features, instead of the strong, proud, beautiful woman she was finally willing to admit she grew into. 

“You fucking  _ better.” _ Matt hissed to her as they watched Jeff’s title match on the monitors backstage. “Are you serious? You’re  _ Lily Carter. _ You’re not gonna bitch out of this  _ now, _ are you? I damn well  _ know _ your momma raised you better than that.” 

Lily shot Matt a dirty look, arms crossed over her chest. “Shove it up your ass, Matty. I’m  _ terrified, _ alright? I ain’t got no shame in admittin’ that.” 

“It’s not about  _ shame, _ dummy, it’s about gettin’ your shit together and doin’ it anyway!” 

Lily balked, nose scrunching up and she swore she was getting the shivers, nervous both about this and about the fate of Jeff’s ongoing match. She winced as she watched him take a particularly nasty bump, practically feeling the phantom pains on her back, trying in vain to ignore the hurricane that was Matt Hardy. 

“Lily.” Matt said softly, capturing her attention with that damn brotherly tone of his, the type of tone that made her think back to her and Jeff being young and dumb, scraping their shins and getting all types of injuries, with Matt calmly wiping the wounds clean and putting on bandages for them. He was never all that much older than them in age, but he always seemed so much older, and wiser beyond his years. 

“Sweetheart, you ain’t got nothin’ to be afraid of.” Matt said softly, putting his hands on her shoulders and squeezing. “Jeff  _ loves _ you. Okay? Just as much as you love him. Anyone could see that. Hell, everyone  _ does _ see it.” 

He had a point there. Every single person that had  _ ever _ seen Lily and Jeff interact at  _ all, _ they’d always get hounded with a ‘how long have you guys been dating’, or even assuming they were married, and was subsequently  _ very _ shocked to find that they were just friends. A good chunk of people wouldn’t believe them - and to this day, still didn’t. 

“But… but… what if everyone’s just seein’ somethin’ that ain’t there?” Lily asked, her lower lip quivering ever so slightly. 

“They’re  _ not.” _ Matt emphasized, before sighing and letting go of her shoulders. “But if that’s what you’re really worried about… then it’s still not even a bit deal. You know Jeff just as good as I do. D’you  _ really _ think it’d ruin ya’ll’s friendship? A friendship that’s lasted since ya’ll were in  _ diapers?” _

Lily sniffled, a small smile quirking at her lip as Matt reminded her of that. “... You’re right.” 

“Course I am.” Matt said, acting cocky and making Lily roll her eyes and whack him playfully on his chest. He laughed and swatted her hand away before looking at her seriously one more time. “So, are you gonna tell him?” 

“I…” Lily hesitated, before nodding, looking and feeling more determined than ever. “Yeah. I’m gonna-  _ Jeff!” _

The backstage area  _ erupted _ into cheers as the audience did when it  _ happened, _ it finally  _ happened, _ the three count sounded and Jeff  _ won! _ Matt and Lily hugged each other  _ tightly _ as they cheered for him, as they watched as Jeff was handed his  _ very _ well earned shiny new belt, watched as he celebrated. 

And no, neither Lily nor Matt would be ashamed to admit they were crying tears of joy as Jeff took in the cheers, the ‘ _ you deserve it’ _ chants, the love and the praise from fans, friends, and family alike. 

It felt like forever, but finally,  _ finally, _ Jeff was backstage, pushing past the curtains and accepting the claps and the cheers waiting for him back here, too. The smile on his face could have outshined the sun, and-

_ “Lily!” _ Jeff perked up, somehow impossibly brighter and happier than he was before when he saw her through the crowd, and literally began to  _ push people away _ so he could get to her. Lily laughed and rushed to him to meet him half way, her mouth open to to congratulate him, to give him a hug and then finally tell him how she felt, when he beat her to the punch. 

Without even realizing he was moving to do so, Lily found herself abruptly being lifted up in the air, Jeff holding right underneath her thighs and kissing the everloving  _ hell _ out of her. She gasped in her surprise, and Jeff didn’t hesitate in taking that opportunity to take the kiss  _ deeper, _ actually properly  _ kissing _ her, unlike all those years ago, their first ever kiss in his backyard in that beat up makeshift ring. 

Her motionless surprise only lasted her a second of time before she was tightly squeezing his waist with her legs, her fingers tangling in his hair as she kissed him like it was the end of the world, her stomach erupting into butterflies and her heart doing flips. 

“I love you.” Jeff panted the moment they had to break for air, both of them hearing, but not paying attention to all of the hooting and hollering happening all around them at their kiss, resting his forehead on hers. Lily laughed breathlessly, unable to stop herself from leaning in for another kiss, though this time, just a lighter peck, before she responded.

“I love you more.” She informed him factually, giggling as he rolled his eyes, a smirk playing at his lips. 

“Now, there you go, upstaging me  _ again.” _ Jeff teased, squeezing the bottom of her thighs. Lily tapped his belt pointedly, shaking her head. 

“Maybe before.” Lily allowed, joking for a moment before getting serious. “But now, you’re the champion. You’re  _ my _ champion.” 

As the mood shifted, Jeff set her down on her feet, and took the belt off of his shoulder and put it on hers. Her eyes watered up in tears for about the millionth time today, but she kept it together for now. At least, kept it together long enough for him to talk. 

“Couldn’t have  _ ever _ done it without you.” Jeff said fiercely, putting a finger to her lips to silence her as she opened her mouth to protest. “Ah, ah, ah. Hush. You listen to me. I  _ couldn’t _ have done it without you. I don’t care what you have to say about it, you or anyone else. Without you by my side… I don’t even wanna think about where I’d be. As much as I’m  _ your _ champion now… you’re  _ my _ champion. Always.” 

Lily was absolutely  _ not _ ashamed to admit that she was absolutely crying again, sniffling and wiping her eyes with the back of her hand before wrapping her arms  _ tightly _ around him in a near bone-crushing hug. 

“I love you, Jeffro.” Lily murmured into his chest, gripping onto his shirt like she was terrified she’d ever have to part from him. 

“I love you too, Flower. More than you will  _ ever _ know.” Jeff spoke softly into her hair, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. 

“Promise?” Lily asked, peeking up at him from under her eyelashes, holding her pinkie up hopefully. 

And god, that smile… she didn’t have enough time in the world to talk about that smile as he offered his pinkie to her, linking their fingers together. 

“Promise.” 

And with that, they sealed their promise with a kiss - a  _ real _ kiss this time, gentle, loving lips pressed together, two souls, two hearts, two minds and two bodies finally feeling joined as one, after all this time. 


End file.
